Saudi king denounces Houthis in rare rebuke

• Rebels accuse Riyadh of deadly strikes as thousands flee
• 154 people reportedly killed in fighting over past two days
• G7 calls on Yemeni group to halt military actions, attacks on shipping
• UK commits air-to-air refuelling support for Saudis

SANAA: The king of Saudi Arabia denounced Yemen’s Houthis as a “terrorist militia” in a rare statement on Tue­sday reacting to an attack that authorities said targeted the holy city of Makkah last week.

King Salman, 90, praised the armed forces and security services for defending the country, and condemned the recent Houthi attempt “to target Makkah”, calling it “a provocation to Muslims aro­u­nd the world”, according to the official Saudi news agency.

Houthis also accused Saudi Arabia on Tuesday of launching a wave of deadly strikes that killed civilians and prison inmates, as Riyadh seeks to repel an offensive that has seen the Iran-backed group seize strategic territory.

The recent Houthi takeover of Yemen’s Red Sea coast has left hundreds dead and heightened fears over global trade and shipping through the vital Bab al-Mandab strait.

It has also forced thousands to flee, with the United Nations on Tuesday forecasting the number of displaced could swell from over 130,000 today to more than 230,000 in the coming months.

The gains made by the Houthis have cemented the hold of Iran and its regional allies over two key waterways in the Middle East — and the straits of Bab al-Mandab and Hormuz — which are major shipping arteries for global flows of energy.

Saudi Arabia, which backs Yemen’s internationally recognised government, has sought to contain the Houthi advance with air strikes.

The Houthis have retaliated with attacks on Saudi territory, including a strike targeting the capital Riyadh for the first time in years.

The strike came days after Saudi Arabia accused the Houthis of targeting the holy city of Makkah, though the fighters denied the claim.

In Yemen, the Houthis said a strike on a prison killed nine detainees, while they also accused the Saudis of killing six civilians including two children in the port city of Mocha.

Two more civilians were killed by strikes in Yemen’s Al-Jawf province, the Houthis added.

“A mother and child were killed, while her husband and two of her other children were wounded in strikes carried out by the Saudi enemy” in the Al-Batin area, Houthi media said, citing the Houthi health ministry.

‘Humiliation’

As violence has escalated, thousands of families have been forced from their homes, many for a second or third time.

“I hope I can find a house to live in with my children. We are exhausted by the heat, the dust and the humiliation,” Arwa, a mother of four children, told AFP at a camp for displaced people near Aden.

Fighting between the Houthis and Saudi-backed Yemeni forces has in the past two days killed 154 people, military sources from both sides told AFP.

“The death toll from Saudi air strikes, clashes and artillery fire in the governorates of Taiz, Al-Jawf, Marib and Saada stands at 118,” Houthi military sources said, while government sources reported 36 killed in their ranks.

Saudi Arabia’s civil defence age­n­­cy on Tuesday issued a warning of potential danger in the country’s sou­th near the Yemen border, the first alert since the Houthis launched their attack on Riyadh over the weekend.

The alert, which asked people to remain indoors and avoid open areas, was lifted a short while later.

UK, French support

G7 leaders representing Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States called on the Houthis to “immediately cease all military actions”.

They also demanded the Houthis end “all threats and attacks against civilian shipping, and to return to the political process in good faith”, while urging Tehran “to end its arming of and support for the Houthis”.

Britain has also agreed to provide some military support to Saudi Arabia, defence minister Luke Pollard said.

A British tanker plane will provide “defensive” air-to-air refuelling for Saudi warplanes to help the country defend against Houthi strikes, the UK government confirmed late Monday.

“We’re doing it for national security reasons in support of our own national security,” Pollard told Sky News.

“In dangerous times, good friends stand together,” he added, insisting the support would be in compliance with international humanitarian law.

France also pledged to help secure Saudi energy infrastructure, a diplomatic source said. But “this in no way involves taking part in the conflict with the Houthis”, the French source said.

The Houthis have carried out attacks against facilities belonging to Saudi oil giant Aramco in the Red Sea port city of Yanbu.

Yemen’s government and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Sal­man have reportedly requested help from US President Donald Trump in fighting the Houthis.

More displacement feared

Renewed fighting in Yemen could see the number of refugees fleeing across the Red Sea to Djibouti jump to 10,000, while displacement inside Yemen could swell to over 230,000, the UN warned on Tuesday.

More than 100,000 civilians have been uprooted inside Yemen while others have risked dangerous sea crossings to flee the violence.

“Intensifying fighting in Yemen could drive more mass displacement,” United Nations refugee agency spokesman Babar Baloch told reporters.

Published in Dawn, September 23rd, 2026